Aug Retail Sales were light relative to expectations by a few tenths. Headline sales were flat and up just .1% both ex auto’s and ex auto’s/gasoline. Core spending, which also takes out volatile building materials, was flat. Also, July was revised lower. Sales of vehicles/parts, furniture, clothing, restaurants/bars and at department stores all fell. Sales rose for online retailers, sporting goods, health/personal care, electronics, and food/beverages. Bottom line, huge market turmoil had an obvious impact on retail sales at the same time job hires remain lackluster. Aug PPI was flat headline and up .1% ex f&f, both .1% below estimates. Y/o/Y though saw a PPI rise of 6.5% and core gain of 2.5%. A .4% fall in wholesale car prices and just a .1% gain in trucks helped to keep a lid on the core rate and a 1.1% rise in food prices was offset by a 1% drop in energy prices. CPI is out tomorrow and will be more of a focus for the markets.
